Congressional declaration of purpose

42 U.S.C. § 3531

• Title: 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
• Chapter: 44 — DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

Text

The Congress hereby declares that the general welfare and security of the Nation and the health and living standards of our people require, as a matter of national purpose, sound development of the Nation's communities and metropolitan areas in which the vast majority of its people live and work.
To carry out such purpose, and in recognition of the increasing importance of housing and urban development in our national life, the Congress finds that establishment of an executive department is desirable to achieve the best administration of the principal programs of the Federal Government which provide assistance for housing and for the development of the Nation's communities; to assist the President in achieving maximum coordination of the various Federal activities which have a major effect upon urban community, suburban, or metropolitan development; to encourage the solution of problems of housing, urban development, and mass transportation through State, county, town, village, or other local and private action, including promotion of interstate, regional, and metropolitan cooperation; to encourage the maximum contributions that may be made by vigorous private homebuilding and mortgage lending industries to housing, urban development, and the national economy; and to provide for full and appropriate consideration, at the national level, of the needs and interests of the Nation's communities and of the people who live and work in them.

History

(Pub. L. 89–174, §2, Sept. 9, 1965, 79 Stat. 667.)

Editorial Notes

Editorial Notes

Codification
Section was formerly classified to section 624 of former Title 5, Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees, prior to the general revision and enactment of Title 5, Government Organization and Employee by Pub. L. 89–554, §1, Sept. 1, 1966, 80 Stat. 378.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date: Interim Appointments
Pub. L. 89–174, §11, Sept. 9, 1965, 79 Stat. 671, provided that:
"(a) The provisions of this Act [see Short Title note below] shall take effect upon the expiration of the first period of sixty calendar days following the date on which this Act is approved by the President [Sept. 9, 1965], or on such earlier date as the President shall specify by Executive order published in the Federal Register, except that any of the officers provided for in sections 3(a), 4(a), and 4(b) of this Act [sections 3532(a), 3533(a), and 3533(b) of this title] may be nominated and appointed, as provided in such sections, at any time after the date this Act is approved by the President [Sept. 9, 1965].
"(b) In the event that one or more officers required by this Act, to be appointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall not have entered upon office on the effective date of this Act, the President may designate any person who was an officer of the Housing and Home Finance Agency immediately prior to said effective date to act in such office until the office is filled as provided in this Act or until the expiration of the first period of sixty days following said effective date, whichever shall first occur. While so acting such persons shall receive compensation at the rates provided by this Act for the respective offices in which they act."

Short Title of 1989 Amendment
Pub. L. 101–235, §1(a), Dec. 15, 1989, 103 Stat. 1987, provided that: "This Act [see Tables for classification] may be cited as the 'Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989'."

Short Title
Pub. L. 89–174, §1, Sept. 9, 1965, 79 Stat. 667, provided: "That this Act [enacting this chapter, amending section 1451 of this title, sections 1 and 2211 of former Title 5, Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees (see sections 101 and 5312 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees), section 19 of Title 3, The President, and section 1723 of Title 12, Banks and Banking, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section] may be cited as the 'Department of Housing and Urban Development Act'."

Savings Provision: Abatement of Actions; Continuation of Rules, Regulations, Etc.; References in Other Laws to Housing and Home Finance Agency; Lapse of Agencies
Pub. L. 89–174, §9, Sept. 9, 1965, 79 Stat. 670, provided that:
"(a) No cause of action by or against any agency whose functions are transferred by this Act [see Short Title note above and section 3534 of this title], or by or against any officer of any agency in his official capacity, shall abate by reason of this enactment. Such causes of action may be asserted by or against the United States or such official of the Department as may be appropriate.
"(b) No suit, action, or other proceeding commenced by or against any agency whose functions are transferred by this Act [see Short Title note above and section 3534 of this title], or by or against any officer of any such agency in his official capacity, shall abate by reason of the enactment of this Act. A court may at any time during the pendency of the litigation, on its own motion or that of any party, order that the same may be maintained by or against the United States or such official of the Department as may be appropriate.
"(c) Except as may be otherwise expressly provided in this Act [see Short Title note above], all powers and authorities conferred by this Act shall be cumulative and additional to and not in derogation of any powers and authorities otherwise existing. All rules, regulations, orders, authorizations, delegations, or other actions duly issued, made, or taken by or pursuant to applicable law, prior to the effective date of this Act [see Effective Date note above] by any agency, officer, or office pertaining to any functions, powers, and duties transferred by this Act shall continue in full force and effect after the effective date of this Act until modified or rescinded by the Secretary or such other officer or office of the Department as, in accordance with applicable law, may be appropriate. With respect to any function, power, or duty transferred by or under this Act and exercised hereafter, reference in another Federal law to the Housing and Home Finance Agency or to any officer, office, or agency therein, except the Federal National Mortgage Association and its officers, shall be deemed to mean the Secretary. The positions and agencies heretofore established by law in connection with the functions, powers, and duties transferred under section 5(a) of this Act [section 3534(a) of this title] shall lapse."

Executive Documents

Executive Order No. 11452
Ex. Ord. No. 11452, Jan. 23, 1969, 34 F.R. 1223, as amended, which established the Council for Urban Affairs to advise the President with respect to urban affairs, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 12553, Feb. 25, 1986, 51 F.R. 7237. The Council was terminated and its functions transferred to the Domestic Council by section 2(b) of Ex. Ord. No. 11541, July 1, 1970, 35 F.R. 10737, set out as a note under section 501 of Title 31, Money and Finance.

Ex. Ord. No. 11668. National Center for Housing Management
Ex. Ord. No. 11668, Apr. 21, 1972, 37 F.R. 8057, provided:
By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States and in accordance with the provisions of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 3531 et seq.), title VIII of the Housing Act of 1964, as amended (20 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), and title V of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1970 (12 U.S.C. 1701z–1 et seq.), it is ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. The Nation's housing stock represents an important national resource which must be preserved and well managed if public and private investments are to be protected, and if we are to meet our goal of providing a decent home and suitable living environment for low and moderate income residents. The production of Federally-assisted housing has greatly expanded in recent years, creating a need for a balanced strategy to ensure that such housing remains viable for the purposes intended.
This expansion also creates a need for a growing supply of new management manpower for the years ahead. Special skills must be developed among these managers so that they can effectively overcome the social and economic problems facing many residents of Federally-assisted housing, including the elderly. Training, the improvement of career opportunities, and the upgrading of industry standards are all essential to the improvement of the Nation's housing management capability, particularly for low and moderate income housing.
Sec. 2. Establishment of a National Center for Housing Management. (a) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development is directed to call upon public-spirited citizens, dedicated and experienced in the appropriate disciplines, to create, in accordance with existing laws, a new, non-governmental, not-for-profit institution to serve as a National Center for Housing Management (referred to herein as the Center).
(b) The Center should be designed to provide objective and independent leadership at the national level in helping meet the Nation's housing management and training needs and should work cooperatively with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and with the public and private organizations and institutions involved in, or affected by, its activities.
Sec. 3. Activities of the Center. The activities of the Center should be developed along lines that include the following objectives:
(1) Development of training and educational programs for housing management and personnel:
(2) Cooperation with public and private national, State, and local organizations and institutions in extending housing management training and educational opportunities, using to the fullest extent possible the services and facilities of existing agencies with expertise in training and education.
(3) Cooperation with national, State, and local organizations and institutions in establishing or expanding recruitment and placement systems that will link training in housing management to job opportunities in that field.
(4) Development of improved housing management practices and assistance in professionalizing the housing management industry; and
(5) Stimulating the creation of new management entities, and strengthening the effectiveness of existing management entities.
Sec. 4. Assistance by Federal Agencies. To the extent consistent with law, all other Federal executive departments and agencies shall cooperate and work with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Center in providing appropriate advice and financial support so as to ensure that the above described objectives are carried out with the most effective and efficient use of Federal, State and local resources, both public and private.